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The last couple of years have been anything but smooth flying for Spirit Airlines. But the mood at the airline's Dania Beach, Florida, headquarters tells a different story. In fact, it's extremely upbeat. And virtually everyone is bullish on the future.
The low-cost carrier, known for its bright yellow planes, is reinvesting in the guest experience in a meaningful way, and some of these overwhelmingly positive changes will roll out as soon as today, May 13, 2025.
Whether you're a frequent Spirit traveler or just book the airline when the price is right, the revamped Free Spirit program and the onboard experience are worth your attention. Both are designed to appeal to more than one type of traveler.
Here's a detailed look at all the updates, the new benefits, and a preview of what's coming soon to Spirit's fleet.
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New Benefits and Enhancements Are Coming to the Free Spirit Loyalty Program
In an era where benefits are more often cut than added, it’s pretty refreshing to see Spirit Airlines investing in the guest experience. The airline is rolling out multiple new perks, making its co-branded credit card a must-have for frequent flyers, and meeting customers where they are with a brand-new payment method.
Here’s a look at the new benefits and enhancements coming to the Free Spirit loyalty program.
Complimentary upgrades for you and a companion
Complimentary upgrades are coming soon for Silver and Gold elite status members as well as Free Spirit® Travel More MasterCard® holders. This brand-new perk will apply to both the elite member or cardholder and one companion. If you're among the lucky few to receive an upgrade, you could bump up to a Comfy Seat or a Big Front Seat at the time of boarding.
Upgrades start today, May 13, 2025 — but only for the member. Complimentary upgrades for companions are expected to roll out in June 2025. But beyond that, details like how priority will be determined are still under wraps.
Now, if you're wondering whether you'll actually receive an upgrade when flying Spirit Airlines, hold your judgment. We’ll get into that shortly.
New ways to redeem your Free Spirit points
Award bookings on Spirit Airlines can cost as few as 2,500 Free Spirit points. But if that low number isn’t enough to entice you, the airline is adding new ways to redeem your points. This includes all of the travel options, including Go Big, Go Comfy, and more.
And later this fall, Free Spirit members will be able to redeem points for “personalized experiences and elevated” perks. This includes experiential redemptions, such as sports or theme park tickets, hotels, or even time in a flight simulator.
Unfortunately, we don't yet know just how many points you'll need for any of these experiential redemptions. But if we had to guess, time in a flight simulator will not start at 2,500 points.
Two free checked bags with a Spirit More Travel Mastercard
To encourage more loyalty members to pick up the Spirit More Travel Mastercard, Spirit and its issuer, Bank of America, are adding a rather lucrative new perk to the card: two free checked bags.
This benefit is set to launch later in 2025. But if you regularly fly Spirit and check a bag, or even fly occasionally, you’ll likely save a bundle just by getting and keeping the card.
The card carries an annual fee of $79 (waived for the first year), so it’s easy to come out ahead if you check bags at least a couple of times per year.
Earn more points with the Free Spirit Debit Card
One of the more interesting enhancements to the Free Spirit program is the upcoming launch of a debit card. The Free Spirit Debit Card is scheduled to arrive this fall, though airline executives suggest the wait may not actually be that long. It could very well be this summer.
The card will allow members to earn Free Spirit points on everyday purchases, board with group 2 in the priority lane, and receive a 25% rebate on in-flight purchases. It'll carry a reasonable monthly fee, with full details to be announced closer to launch.
Spirit to Expand Its Go Comfy Product Offering
Late last summer, Spirit Airlines revamped its business model and began bundling fares. This introduced four “Go” bundles, with Go Comfy and Go Big offering the most benefits and personal space.
For those unfamiliar, Go Comfy includes a blocked middle seat (similar to intra-European business class), a complimentary snack and drink, priority boarding, and a free carry-on. But this seating arrangement is about to look a little different. This will start with the phasing out of the blocked middle seat.
Spirit plans to expand the number of rows offering Comfy Seats from three to seven and make the middle seat bookable. Once complete, its aircraft will feature over 40 extra-legroom seats, each with 32 inches of pitch.
Installation begins in June 2025 and is expected to reach most of the fleet by the end of July. These new seats will be available for booking starting May 15 for travel on or after July 9, 2025.
Why Is Spirit Airlines Making These Loyalty Program Changes?
The last few years have been especially challenging for Spirit — and for many other airlines as well. So it’s fair to ask why Spirit is making these changes, and why now.
While I don’t work for Spirit and I don’t fly the airline all that often, what I do know is this: the motivation behind these program enhancements is Spirit’s belief that the Free Spirit program can be more engaging, more rewarding, and deliver benefits that other airlines often fall short on.
So, here's a little color on some of the benefits noted earlier.
Complimentary upgrades
Scores of AwardWallet readers hold elite status with major airlines. For many, the benefits are no longer worth the cost or effort it takes to earn them. It’s frustrating to end up 72nd on the upgrade list and to pay a premium just for that privilege.
But with Spirit, that might not be the case at all — nor does the airline want it to be.
Just by holding the Spirit More Travel Mastercard, you could land one of 40+ extra-legroom seats or even a Big Front Seat after booking the cheapest fare. While the airline admits that “a lot” of Comfy and Big Front Seats are sold before the time of boarding, several routes should still offer travelers a very real shot at an upgrade.
And more cleared upgrades mean more satisfied travelers, which ideally will keep you coming back for more.
Why a debit card?
Spirit Airlines is launching a new card product later this year. And if you're wondering why it's a debit card and not a premium rewards credit card, it's simply because of how customers pay for Spirit flights.
While we always recommend using a credit card to book flights — not just for the bonus rewards but also for the travel protections — there are plenty of situations where that isn’t possible. Maybe you're a student without much credit history, or your credit score doesn’t qualify you for the Spirit More Travel Mastercard.
That’s where the Free Spirit Debit Card comes in.
Spirit shares that more than 20% of customers use a debit card to pay for flights. Thus, this product is designed to meet those customers where they are. Spirit sees this as a way to engage and connect with customers now to encourage them to participate more in the Free Spirit program and eventually move into the credit card ecosystem.
Final Thoughts
Spirit Airlines has made it clear from the top down that it wants to compete, and making the Free Spirit program more engaging and rewarding while meeting demand for a more premium onboard experience is the place to start. If the airline can deliver on those promises, it could be the dawn of a brand-new day for Spirit. Still, Spirit’s reputation often precedes it. And whether these changes are enough to keep you flying the airline or convince you to give it another shot is something only time will tell.
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